Nigeria’s top ten banks on the NGX reported a combined pretax profit of N2.7 trillion for the six months ended June 2025.
Although this represents a 12% decline from the N3.16 trillion recorded in the same period last year, it still highlights the sector’s solid performance.
Profitability remains one of the most important measures of financial health and operational efficiency, an indicator that investors and analysts closely track to assess how well institutions are performing.
Pretax profit, in simple terms, shows how much a company earns after accounting for operating expenses, impairments, and other costs, but before taxes are deducted.
This article examines the performance of Nigeria’s top banks in their H1 2025 financial results, most of which have been published, except for Fidelity Bank, which has yet to release its numbers.
The focus here is on the pretax profit amount generated during the six-month period, rather than on year-on-year changes in performance.
With that context, here are the 10 most profitable Nigerian banks in the first half of 2025.
Wema Bank Plc ranked 7th with a pretax profit of N100.5 billion for the first half of 2025, up 229% from N30.5 billion in the same period last year.
Gross earnings grew 69.5% to N303.7 billion, driven by a 64.8% rise in interest income to N240.6 billion.
- Loans and advances contributed N141 billion, while investment securities added N97.6 billion.
After interest expenses of N111.4 billion, net interest income doubled to N129.2 billion. Following an impairment charge of N532.5 million, net interest income stood at N128.6 billion.
The bank earned N45.3 billion in net fees and commissions, contributing to operating income which rose 109% to N191.7 billion.
Despite higher expenses, Wema held on to a strong N100.5 billion profit before tax. Its balance sheet grew, with total assets reaching N3.9 trillion up 10.53%, and retained earnings up 64% to N169.3 billion.
